Regina Hall Talks Spanx, Sexuality, Yoga and Being Uninhibited in ‘About Last Night’

*Regina Hall stars in the upcoming romantic adult comedy, “About Last Night,” as the ever-so-crazy Joan, the significant other in a functioning, dysfunctional relationship with Kevin Hart’s character Bernie, and the result is unadulterated comedic genius.

But to play Joan, Regina says she had to be completely uninhibited to pull it off.

With her last two films, “Think Like A Man” and “Best Man Holiday,” as solid hits under her belt, while doing press for “About Last Night” the beautiful, bubbly actress discussed working with Kevin Hart, how she got over a bad break up, how she learned to put her leg behind her head in one of the film’s sexier scenes, her insight into a third installment of Best Man Holiday and so much more!

What gave you the freedom to be uninhibited for your role in About Last Night?
Joan had to be that or it wouldn’t have worked because if I felt like if she were inhibited or in any way apologetic or ashamed of who she was it just wouldn’t work. You just had to watch her and go on a journey with Joan and so she had to be on it. And I felt like if she were inhibited it would make it less than or somehow seem wrong and I wanted her to feel empowered when you watched her. [She was] Crazy! (laughs)

You really tapped into your comedic prowess. Do you bring Kevin up or does he bring you up or is there a balance between you guys?
Kevin and I have really good chemistry comically. And we never knew it. We’ve worked in the same movie a lot but we’ve never worked in the same scene where we’ve gotten to work off each other. So I think we made each other better. He’s so talented, but what’s great about Kevin … he wants a scene to work, so he’s not someone who needs to be the show stopper. Whatever he can give you, he’s the kind of person that he offers it because he likes for it to work as a whole.

How much of it was on paper?
We improved a lot. We had fun improving. There’s stuff that wasn’t in the script that we made up. That is my leg behind my head! … Cause I do yoga, but that was not what was in the script. In that kind of sex scene putting my leg there with Kevin is comfortable.

In an ensemble cast do you consider what you’re bringing to the cast?
I kind of just take the character and see what she’s supposed to bring to the page. Like I knew from the script that Joan and Bernie added the comedic element to the film and so my task becomes how to balance that so that they can have a storyline that people care about and still be funny. Because you still need to care about them getting together at the end, even though you’re like ‘should they be together?’

How do you feel about the whole ‘one night stand’ scenario?
I mean I understand the need for rules and there are, and I don’t advise people to go out and do one night stands, but the key with Debbie and Joan … I don’t think they went into one night stands with expectations of relationships. … I mean listen, there’s six, seven billion people … there’s got to be more than one way to start a relationship. Porn stars are married, not everyone can do that but it’s done and sometimes it works. So I don’t think there’s one formula…

This is your third ensemble cast – is this something you seek out or would you like to have a starring role?
I enjoy ensembles. I’m always happy that I’m still working. I don’t know that I think that far ahead. Every time that I get to work in an ensemble I usually work with someone that I learn so much from. I can certainly look back at this point in my career and know that I wouldn’t have been ready five years ago or 10 years ago to carry a film in the way that I would be now. It has to be when your instrument is really ready. I imagine when it’s ready it’ll happen. Now, my prayer is that it doesn’t happen before then.

As a woman who is approaching a certain age in this business do you feel the pressure to now have to always look a certain way? Is that where the yoga comes from?
No, the yoga started from a very bad break-up. The yoga had nothing to do with the business … That break up was also instrumental in turning me into a woman in a lot of different ways. So the yoga was actually just a part of that… I have never particularly played like the beautiful girl … and my acting coaches always say don’t ever create an entire career on sex appeal or looks because you will out age that. So that’s never been a goal but if a role calls for it and I’m still able to throw some spanx on and do it, I’ll do it, but it’s never really what I want to bring [just] because I want to bring it. Joan just happens to maneuver around the world in a way where she uses her sexuality but I think you can maneuver around the world that way at any size.

Best Man Holiday was runaway hit and there’s already anticipation for a third installment – where would you like to see the story go?
I hope I’m not fighting in this one. I hope she can be happy (laughs)… I know there’s gotta be joy… so I look forward to see what kind of adult fun they’re going to have. But I don’t have an idea, he hasn’t told us. I mean it alluded to the fact at the end of the movie that Terrence is getting married but I can only imagine who and what kind of wedding Terrence is having so that already sets up enough.

Catch Regina Hall and the rest of the cast of “About Last Night,” which includes Kevin Hart, Michael Ealy and Joy Bryant out in heaters Valentine’s Day.

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